Liners are used to protect the interior surfaces of pickup truck beds. They prevent or minimize scratching and denting of the bed, thereby helping to maintain a truck's looks and increasing truck resale value. Liners typically cover the entire bed of the truck, with a separate section affixed to the interior surface of the tail gate. Bed liners are usually made from vacuum formed plastic which is molded to fit the contours of a truck bed. Most liners also have multiple corrugations found throughout the liner surface. The corrugations serve multiple purposes including water drainage, structural strength, and, perhaps most importantly, provide an additional cushion between the liner and the truck bed. Examples of truck bed liners are seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,693,507 to Dresen et al., Japanese Patent No. 62-12478 (A) to Mitsuo, and Japanese Patent No. 2-127141(A) to Jungi.
While truck bed liners offer adequate protection to the truck bed itself, items stored in liners are free to slide around, thereby increasing the risk of damage to those items and, during sudden stops, turning the items into projectiles which can cause injury. Over the years, attempts have been made to create dividers which compartmentalize truck beds. Items can then be stored in a compartmentalized section of the truck bed, thereby decreasing the risk of injury to items stored in the bed and to persons who might be injured by flying objects. Solutions have generally relied upon a separate divider unit inserted at a predetermined point in the bed.
An example of a separate divider system for truck bed liners is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,167,434 to Bott. This patent teaches a truck bed liner having recessed members molded into its sidewalls, the recessed members being capable of accepting wood or other divider materials within them. By sliding a separate piece of wood or other material into the recessed members, the truck bed liner is compartmentalized.
A similar type device is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,415,506 to Payne. This patent teaches of recesses being molded into the truck bed itself at predetermined points. The recesses, like in the Bott patent, accept wood or other divider material within their channels.
Further examples of divider systems for pickup beds which utilize separate dividers are seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,265,993 and 5,044,642, both to Wayne. These patents teach divider systems being placed into the bed of a pickup truck. Both patents rely upon a receiving bracket being fixed to the sidewall of a pickup truck bed. Dividers are then slid into the receiving brackets.
A final example of a separate divider for pickup truck beds is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,733,899 to Keys. This device teaches a portable divider comprised of a flat support plate that extends across the bed of a truck and abuts against the wheel well of the truck.
A shortcoming of all these devices is that they require separate divider panels be carried within the bed of the pickup truck at all times. If the divider panels are not in the bed of the pickup truck, the truck bed cannot be compartmentalized. Conversely, having to carry around separate divider panels at all times may be inconvenient for a user when attempting to carry large items for which no compartmentalizing of the truck bed is required. Furthermore, transporting the divider panels within the truck bed may create a hazard inasmuch as unless they are tied down, they are free to move about the bed of the pickup truck.
An example of a truck bed load organizer in which the panels are in a horizontal fixed position in the bed of the truck when not use is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,875,730 to Justice. This patent teaches a plurality of cutouts made into a base piece which lays horizontally on a pickup bed floor. Panels, corresponding in size and shape to the cutouts, are placed into the cutouts, and a hinge having a hinge pin is used to connect the panels to the base. The manufacturing of this product is complex, making it cost prohibitive for many individuals.
A final example is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,456,514, also to Justice. This patent teaches a base piece made of a flat belting material into which three sided cutouts are made. The cutouts can be lifted along their free ends to create truck bed compartments. Items stored within the compartments provide the tension to keep the cutouts in place. Once the stored items are removed, the cutouts return to their flat position. A shortcoming of this device is that since the stored items provide the tension to keep the cutouts in place, this device is difficult to work with when an individual is trying to move items about the bed of the truck. Also, since the natural tendency of the cutouts is to move back into their natural flat state, the oppositional pressure provided by the cutout material against the stored item may crush the stored items. Finally, over time, belting material has a tendency to weaken. Therefore, through extensive use the cutouts will not return to their original positions, causing a lip upon which items may snag.
There is, therefore, need for economical, easy to use, long lasting integrated divider system for truck beds.